Over the last one hundred twenty-five years (125 y.) or so plumbing has developed into a modern engineering marvel. American cities, suburbs and small towns have implemented a maze of plumbing pipes and pumps that both supply users with potable water from water sources and dispose of water borne waste into sewage systems.
The plumbing that removes water borne waste is commonly referred to as the drain-waste-vent (DWV) or sanitary piping system. The sanitary piping system removes sewage and greywater waste from a house or other building. Such waste is produced at toilets, sinks and showers. To prevent the unpleasant smell of sewer gas each sanitary piping fixture is supplied with a water trap, which is a section of pipe, usually containing a “U”-shaped trap filled with water. On one (1) side of the “U” shape traps are waste lines that run to the sewer system while on the other side is living or working spaces. Ideally the water in the “U” shape traps block sewer gas from seeping into the living spaces.
While sanitary piping systems work very well, they do have problems. Sewer gases can build up rather high pressures due to biodegrading sewer matter and other causes. Such pressure can cause sewer gases to escape back through the “U” shape traps. This is easily prevented by simply venting the sanitary piping system to atmospheric pressure using a vent line. A common sight on the roof of almost every home or building is the sanitary piping system vent line. Such vent lines release pressure build-up in the sanitary piping system which aids sewage transfer.
Properly maintained vent lines work very well. However, since the interior of the pipe is completely open to the environment, foreign objects or materials can easily enter. Items such as twigs, leaves, dirt, trash, and the like can fall or be blown inside, while birds, small animals, and insects can fly, crawl, or become trapped inside. Such materials can accumulate within the vent line, causing it to cease operating properly in that air does not freely enter and leave the vent line. This can result in piping backups and flooding. When such occurs the most realistic fix is to go to the roof and remove objects and blockages. A most unpleasant and dangerous task.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a means by which foreign material can be kept out of sanitary pipe vents in an effort to eliminate the problems as described above. Beneficially such a means would be easy to attach using common tools and fasteners and would allow air to readily enter the vent line. Even more beneficially that means would be easily removed to allow access to the vent line if required or if modifications are needed.